For Keeps (4 page)

“
I didn’t dismiss
you. Where do you think you’re going?”

“
To study for the damn bar
exam,” he called over his shoulder, slamming the door behind
him. Rather than heading back upstairs, he went outside and lit a
cigarette. He needed to calm down. His father had the worst way of
getting under his skin.

There had been a time when he’d
been proud of Tyler for his talent at hockey. Then, something had
changed, and he’d started dumping all over both Tyler and
Tyler’s mother. Lisa Princeton had escaped, filing for divorce
and moved across the country. When his father had forced Tyler to
quit the hockey team, then assured that he would go to law school,
Tyler fought long and hard to live with his mother, but his father
hadn’t let him and had forced the contract on his trust fund.

He was about to go back inside
and lick his wounds in his office when Valerie stepped out. He turned
away from her, not wanting her to see the emotions on his face. He
quickly put on a mask of stoicism and offered her a smile that he
knew didn’t reach his eyes. “What are you doing here?”

Valerie saw the look of pain on
Tyler’s face, no matter how hard he tried to hide it, and she
frowned at him, her brow creasing with concern. “What happened,
Tyler? Is everything okay?”

He laughed mirthlessly. “Just
the usual bullshit with my father.”

Valerie gulped, remembering the
horrible things she’d heard the elder Princeton say about his
son. “I’m sorry, Tyler. But whatever he said, it’s
your life and you need to live it your way. You know, some people
just don’t think about the impact that their words have…maybe
because they are far too busy worrying about their own feelings to
even think about someone else’s. I know what it’s like to
hear something negative over and over again until you start to
believe it. But Tyler, that doesn’t make it true.”

Tyler sighed and nodded. How
could she possibly understand so well? And how did she know he was
upset? Most people couldn’t read him. But then, few people
cared enough to really try to get close to him. His father made sure
of that.

“
As a senior, a recruiter
found me and gave me the opportunity to play professional hockey.
Without warning, my father took me off the hockey team and said no
son of his was going to make a fool of himself on national television
instead of preparing himself for a lifelong, lucrative career.”

Valerie cringed. She couldn’t
imagine her family, however poor, snatching her dreams away like
that. She supposed it didn’t matter how much money you had;
there were always problems, and sometimes, the money itself was the
problem. She didn’t know what to say to him, so she just put a
hand on his shoulder, hoping it was comforting in some way.

“
Hey, cousin.” They
both looked up as Sean walked by. He smiled lasciviously. “Looks
like you’ve found a source of entertainment,” he taunted.
“Is that what your dad’s paying her for?” Valerie
clenched Tyler’s arm, holding him back as his anger peaked
again and he started to go after him.

“
Don’t
bother…please,” she begged him in a low voice she hoped
was soothing. “I can take care of myself.” She nudged him
in the opposite direction. “Come on, I’ll buy you a
coffee today, and then we’ll go upstairs and start studying.”

Reluctantly and still seeing red,
Tyler nodded and followed her lead. This was obviously not his day.

* * *

It was late, and the office was
empty when Valerie knocked on Tyler’s door. He’d asked if
she could stay and study with him some more this evening, after he’d
had time to develop questions from the material he was going to look
over while she did her paperwork. She opened the door and found him
deeply absorbed in one of the study guides, scratching his head with
a scowl on his face, a notepad covered in scrawl laying on the desk
in front of him.

When he heard her come in, he
looked up, and his face instantly brightened, giving Valerie a smile
that made her heart skip a beat. She really shouldn’t be having
these reactions to him, but how could she not? He was devastatingly
handsome, and his bad-boy alpha-male persona mixed with the
underlying flatterer and tender-handed lover were too much to ignore.
“How’s it going?” she asked.

He shook his head. “I’m
completely lost. I can’t even begin to put this all into any
kind of outline I can follow. I mean, individually each part of the
whole makes a sense, but when I try to put all this legalese into
perspective, it becomes one big jumble.”

“
This is true. That’s
okay, we’ll get it organized for you.” She made a move to
grab the notepad, but Tyler grabbed her hand instead, staying it. She
looked up at him, wide eyed, and he let go, putting the book down and
coming around the desk. He wrapped his arms around her waist and
pulled her tight against his chest, taking her mouth with the same
passion that he’d taken her so many times in a more personal
manner the night before. His tongue made love to hers and made her
breath come in pants and gasps.

It was too much, and Valerie
tangled her hands in his hair, rising up on her tiptoes, wanting to
taste more of him. It was like honey and smoke, a sweet masculine
taste that made her wet, made things low on her body clench and beg.

As if understanding her need,
Tyler ran his hand over her ass, around her hips, and between them,
stroking just above that wonderful, sweet spot. Her clit throbbed
with sensation, and she rocked against him, begging his fingers to
drop just an inch or two lower to satisfy her desire. Instead, his
fingers reached beneath her shirt, toying with the skin on her
stomach and then up under the wire of her bra, drawing circles around
her breast and pinching her nipple, even as he continued diving into
her mouth.

Her nails found the back of his
neck, biting into his skin, and then trailing more lightly down his
arms and then to his waist, where she untucked his shirt and moved to
feel the hard muscle and smooth skin of his chest. She could feel the
thrumming of his racing heart, and she wanted him more than ever.
Without a second thought, she reached for his fly, only to find his
erection thrusting against the material already.

She made fast work of his pants,
dropping them around his ankles, and reached inside his boxers,
grasping his shaft tightly so he hissed a breath through his clenched
teeth. He thrust against her palm, and she moaned, feeling the
moisture building between her legs.

With a rough movement, Tyler
grabbed her hips and lifted her onto his desk, setting her on the
edge and pushing up the skirt she wore, his fingers pushing aside her
panties so he could feel her wet clit. She spread her legs wide for
him, throwing her head back with a cry as he pushed two fingers
inside her, curling them until he found the right spot to make her
gasp. Over and over, he stroked it, fingers pushing in and out of
her, torturously. He watched her features clench as she approached
orgasm and felt the muscles inside her pussy convulsing with her
release as cum coated his hand. He could barely contain his own
explosion at the sight of intense pleasure on her face.

“
Please, Tyler, I want you
inside me.” Her begging whisper was his undoing, and he pushed
his boxers down, while she tore at her panties. Quickly and
aggressively, he pushed his cock into her in one fast motion, and
they both swore at the incredible satisfaction of the sensation. He
almost ripped her blouse and shoved at her bra, cupping both her
breasts in his hands and leaning her back on her hands as he took up
a murderously fast rhythm, pounding into her with incredible need.
She felt better than anything he’d ever imagined, and it was
all he could do not to cum immediately.

Valerie felt the waves building
and crashing, over and over again, her pleasure finding its
culmination every time before the last orgasm had faded. She thought
she might lose consciousness for a moment, as Tyler kneaded her
breasts roughly with each stroke. It was sublime, and she bent her
knees, propping her feet on the desk beside her to open herself wider
to him, wanting him deeper and deeper until she could feel him all
the way to the end of her.

Her solicitous movements
heightened Tyler’s ferociousness, and he plowed into her, not
holding back, and when he came, he roared, feeling her explosion one
more time as he poured into her. She felt back on the desk,
exhausted, and Tyler leaned his head back, his cock resting deep
inside her as he sought breath and willed his heart not to beat its
way out of his chest.

When Valerie sat up with his
shaft still sheathed inside her and laid a penetrating kiss on him,
his eyes grew wide as he felt himself growing hard again. She moaned
into his mouth, wiggling her hips to entice him, and he was ready for
another round.

He began rocking his hips, a
slow, steady motion, massaging her inner walls as his penis grew
harder and harder, and she sighed his name, making him growl. He
wanted more, felt a need to own her completely.

Pulling out of her and groaning
as she whimpered her displeasure at his removal, he turned her over,
pressing her face down on the desk, and he squeezed her ass as he
entered her from behind.

Valerie felt an intense pressure
as he slid into her the first time and the sensation quickly exploded
into pure pleasure, with fireworks lighting her eyes, and she
screamed with pleasure. With a few quick thrusts and an animalistic
cry, Tyler filled her again, and she clenched around him, gaining her
own peak with his. He finally collapsed on her back, laying several
light kisses on her neck, and she delighted in the feel of his weight
on her.

After several long moments, he
muttered, “That was incredible.”

Unable to stifle a laugh, she
nuzzled into him. “Yes, it was.”

Tyler reluctantly pulled out of
her, exhausted from the intensity of their sex, and headed for the
bathroom, bringing back a towel to wipe the sweat from his body. When
Valerie reached for it, he handed it to her, and he groaned as he
watched her clean herself before pulling her panties back up and
straightening her skirt.

She raised an eyebrow at him.
“So, are we still studying?”

He smiled. “Yes, but first,
I’m starving. So, I say we head out and grab a bite to eat.
Then, we can either go to the library or back to your place to study.
I’d have you at my place, but I don’t want to subject you
to the joys of my father outside of business hours.”

“
I’m perfectly okay
with you coming to my place.” But a coy, seductive smile
crossed her lips. “I’m just concerned we’d get
distracted.” She dropped her eyes meaningfully and blushed.

Tyler chuckled. “This is
true. But I’m not sure that’s a bad thing.”

“
Then let’s do it.”

* * *

The following morning, Valerie
sat, somewhat uncomfortably, at her desk, waiting anxiously to see
Tyler’s face. He’d spent the night again, and while
they’d fallen asleep earlier, they’d still filled their
evening with incredible sex. She was sore and tired, but she was
quite satisfied. At the same time, she unfortunately felt herself
getting emotionally attached; something she knew would never get her
anywhere.

When the elevator dinged, she
looked up hopefully, her eyes lighting up when Tyler stepped out,
only to darken when his cousins followed behind him. Tyler gave her a
knowing smile, and she returned it, watching him pass by, Aaron and
Sean right on his heels. As they crossed in front of her, Aaron eyed
her from head to toe, a mocking smile etched tightly on his face.
Falling back, just out of earshot, he lifted his chin to her, the
words tumbling out like razors.

“
When you’re done
pleasuring my cousin, perhaps I can have a turn.”

Rage swirled and tore at
Valerie’s chest, and she shot fire from her eyes as she met his
gaze. “You’re digusting,” she replied.

Forcing the anger down, she
turned away from him and went back to what she was doing, completely
ignoring him. She could see the displeasure at her rebuff out of the
corner of her eye, and it greatly satisfied her.

Of course, she wouldn’t
mention it to Tyler, for fear he’d kill the man. Whether or not
he had feelings for her, Tyler was a protective man, and she had no
doubts that he would go after Aaron without a second thought.
Sighing, she combed her fingers through her thick hair, a little
unnerved despite her show of confidence, and tried to concentrate on
her work.

She thought about seeing if Tyler
wanted to go for coffee, but he was on the phone in his office –
she could hear his side of the conversation and it sounded intense –
so she could wait.

When Tyler finally hung up the
phone, unsatisfied at how that call had gone, he peered out his
office, the sight of Valerie alone making him feel better, more
relaxed. But something was wrong, in her posture, and in the strained
look he saw from her profile on her face. He moved quickly to her and
leaned down to speak low in her ear. “Is something wrong?”

She looked up at him and gave him
a small, forced smile. “No, not really. I’m just having a
hard time concentrating.”

Relieved, he nodded. “Good,
let’s get out of here for a bit.”